Uruguay

A South American confection of two tender cornstarch shortbread rounds sandwiched with dulce de leche and finished with a coating of dark or milk chocolate, desiccated coconut, or a dusting of powdered sugar.

A communal Argentine and Uruguayan tradition of large unportioned beef cuts — alongside offal and fresh sausages — grilled low-and-slow over hardwood live coals on a parrilla iron grate, governed as much by ritual, social sequence, and the parrillero's fire craft as by any single ingredient.

A flaky, buttery laminated breakfast pastry from Uruguay made in many sweet and savoury shapes, eaten daily with mate or coffee.

A clear, savoury fish broth simmered with vegetables, a coastal Río de la Plata staple eaten as a restorative, everyday Uruguayan soup.

Uruguay's national sandwich: a towering round bun filled with thin-pounded churrasco steak, cooked ham, bacon, a fried or hard-boiled egg, and melted mozzarella, finished with fresh vegetables and mayonnaise.

A Uruguayan and Argentine summer punch of white (or sparkling) wine macerated with chopped fresh fruit, sweetened and served chilled at celebrations.

A slowly reduced, caramelized sweetened milk confection that achieves its characteristic deep amber color, milky-caramel flavor, and thick spreadable body through prolonged Maillard browning of lactose and milk proteins.

A hand-held, crimped pastry turnover — baked or fried — encasing a seasoned filling of meat, cheese, or vegetables within a tender, flaky or lard-enriched dough.

A Uruguayan mixed grill of assorted offal, sausages and beef cuts cooked slowly over wood-ember charcoal and served as a shared platter.

A caffeinated infusion of dried, ground yerba mate leaves (Ilex paraguariensis) steeped in a hollow gourd and sipped communally through a bombilla, a metal straw with a built-in filter.

A thin beef cutlet pounded to uniform thinness, dipped in beaten egg seasoned with garlic and parsley, coated in fine dry breadcrumbs, and pan-fried in hot oil until the crust is even, dry, and golden.

A sweet variant of Río de la Plata blood sausage in which pig's blood is bound with sugar, walnuts, raisins and orange peel, then poached and grilled on the parrilla.

Soft potato-and-flour gnocchi eaten on the 29th of every month in the Río de la Plata as a tradition of luck and prosperity, with money placed under the plate.

A Uruguayan baked pasta casserole layering cooked pasta with a meat ragù, béchamel, and cheese, baked until bubbling and golden as a Sunday family centerpiece.

A Uruguayan dessert from Paysandú of airy sponge cake layered with whipped cream, peaches, dulce de leche, and crumbled meringue.

A slow-simmered River Plate boiled dinner of beef, pork, chorizo, chickpeas, and root vegetables cooked together in a single broth.

A Río de la Plata dish of softly scrambled eggs folded with finely cut ham and crisp julienned (matchstick) fried potatoes.

A ricotta-based cheesecake set in a shortcrust pastry shell, a classic of Italian-Uruguayan bakeries.

A flat disc of simple wheat dough deep-fried in fat until crisp and puffed, a Río de la Plata snack traditionally eaten on rainy or cold days.